Death approaches and it comes in the shape of a beast. The Ferra looks every bit of a monster from the storybooks his grandfather read to him as a child.
Its large paws ready to break his bones, its impossibly sharp claws ready to tear into his weak flesh, and its menacing fangs ready to devour his soul.
Alexander can't help but swallow even though his mouth is painfully empty. A sane man would run, that would be a mistake because as soon as he turns his back, he's dead.
No.
The only option is to fight, fight and possibly live… or at least die with some semblance of honor.
Alexander breathes and waits, watching the Ferra shuffle with deadly intent. He can tell it's growing impatient.
Soon…
The boy feels a hot stickiness form on his forehead and the back of his neck, his hand, his whole body really, shakes but he quickly stills himself.
No. He can't let his fear control him, not here.
Not now.
Alexander has one chance, he can't mess up.
He can't!
The Ferra growls and its powerful limbs burst into action. It's a blur, there is no other way to describe it; one moment it was in front of him and the next, gone.
Alexander swings down mercilessly, as if he's chomping a chunk of wood, his whole body folding as he does. All his strength in one strike.
SCreeCh!
The boy feels resistance, metal against metal. It's an ugly sound, one that makes him wince. A shudder runs up his limbs as if an earthquake shook him from within.
The Ferra falls in front of him, laying on its side. He doesn't see any blood though considering the shade of the Hellion's fur Alexander wouldn't see it even under the best of circumstances.
The boy backs away and raises his ax high above his head, ignoring the strain of his overworked arms. His chest burns and stings painfully, he looks down for a second and pales.
Across his chest are four thin but deep marks, Alexander could swear he could see the muscles.
'Oh gods! Ohgods!ohgodsohgods!' Panic sets in and his legs turn to lead, he stares unblinkingly ahead, his face cold like ice as if the wound was something he was used to.
Shock. Pure, unbridled shock is what freezes his face, his body, his soul.
Alexander had never experienced a wound such as this one. Never been in a life or death fight as he is in right now. His mind can't comprehend what has happened and his body can't process the pain he's enduring, so even though he stands strong, his gaze unwavering and his arms held high… the boy is completely gone.
It may very well spell his doom.
The Ferra struggles to its limbs. A rumble reverberates through its body, rage clear across its maw. It stares daggers at Alexander, hate radiating off the Hellion's form.
It prowls forward, like the predator it pretends to be and the monster it truly is. As it creeps ever so forward it opens its jaws wide, fangs almost glowing, the light of the boy's ring giving them a sinister gleam.
With a savage crunch, it clamps around the boy's ankle, blood gushing into its mouth.
"AAaAgrH!" Alexander screams and swings his tool down with a roar of anguish. The bit of the ax sinks into the Ferra's exposed neck, a loud clunk echoing around the cave.
"AgmhH!" The Hellion releases the boy's limb as a whine escapes it. The monster tries to scurry away, like a puppy that was caught sneaking food from its master but Alexander gives it no room to flee and smashes his free foot against the back of the ax's head.
'agGmMHH!"
Alexander continues to smite his ax with an almost ruthless abandonment.
One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten.
Each attack was met with a hideous cry from the monster. Though to Alexander it was the bell of closing victory.
"Come on!"
Eleven.
"Die!"
Twelve.
"Fu–" Alexander puts all his strength and focus into his attack, so much so that he misses the dark spark in the monster's eye.
Just as his foot touches the tool for the thirteenth time, the Ferra's fur stands straight and extends out with dizzying speed.
Several of the spikes pierce his leg.
Alexander wails and falls onto his back, his ax for the first time since he entered the cave leaves his hands. With loathsome eyes he glares at the beast which glares back just as hashly though much to his surprise and relief it does not move.
It can't move.
Though as he comes to find out as he tries to stand, neither can he, he thumps his head against the harsh floor and covers his eyes with the palm of his hands, weeping like the child he is.
A new timer starts.
Alexander's whole body trembles, pain and exhaustion taking hold of him. The Ferra's whimpers echo around him, reverberating in his head like a pounding hammer.
Why? What had he done to be put in this situation?
Did he hurt someone in his past life? He must have.
Alexander tries to sit up but his body ignores his demands. How long before the Hellion gathers its strength and finishes the job?
He has to get up.
He has to get up!
He HaS to gET UP!
HE HAS TO GET UP!
GET UP!
"AARRAGHHHH!" Alexander pushes his body with all his might and with herculean strength he sits up, "Come on!" He screams as he puts his feet under him and stands.
His body sways, his arms hanging like leaves in the wind and stomps forward. Though there is no light to guide him, the whine of the Ferra leads him to his destination.
One step and another until he eventually sees the outline of the beast. Dropping to his knees he grabs ahold of his ax and the ring gifted him by Franklin glows.
His eyes meet that of the Ferra's.
They are wide and wet, pain and fear clear in its glaze. So different from the eyes of a man yet… so similar.
Its eyes are close to his, a copper color though while his is light, those of the Ferra are burnt as if fire lit them. They're beautiful.
Something so beautiful couldn't be so evil, could it? So devoid of anything positive, right?
The Ferra closes its eyes and seems to accept its fate. The boy face scrunch in deep thought before he makes a decision.
Alexander pulls his ax out, ignoring the yelp from the thing below him. The wound isn't a deep one, he rips the bottom half of his forest green tunic off and wraps it around the Ferra's neck, stopping the bleeding.
"Please don't let this be a mistake." He mutters, his eyes meet the Ferra's eyes again and the two stare at one another, he could still see the hate but also confusion along with a hint of what he thinks is surprise.
He knows he should feel a burning anger for the monster but he can't summon it for the life of him.
Why couldn't he?
It tried to kill him, it sliced his chest open and tore his ankle apart yet Alexander couldn't bring the same visceral anger from before.
"Alright." He nodded to himself, he had made his decision and he wasn't going to back out of it, "I'm going to let you live and I'm going to help you heal but I swear to the gods above if you try to kill me again I won't hesitate."
The Ferra says nothing in return and he's sure even if it could it wouldn't be anything he would want to hear but he made himself clear and he knew looking into its eyes that it understood.
Sitting up he tears another strip of cloth from his tunic and hikes the leg of his mud brown braes before wrapping his ankle, he then tears more of his tunic off and wraps his shin over his braes.
He takes the rest of his tunic and bandages his chest, covering the claw marks from the Ferra before standing up. Alexander carefully pulls the beast into his arms and given its size the challenge is nonexistent.
He cradles the Hellion as if it were a baby and then walks over to the body of water, he watches the pool move and remembers an old lesson from his grandfather.
Rivers flow to the lowest point possible, towards an open body of water.
Like a lake.
It's his only chance.
His only way out.
He begins the journey.